All Posts by alex dobie

From a Huffington Post feature on the origins of Apple's 'Siri' comes the revelation that the famed voice assistant almost became a poster child for Verizon's line of Android phones. In late 2009, Siri's founders reportedly signed a deal with the carrier that was to bring Siri to its Android phones launching in the new year. HuffPo reports that Verizon even went as far as filming commercials...

The official Jelly Bean update for the international Samsung Galaxy S2 (GT-i9100) has started to roll out, starting with unlocked handsets in Spain. The update is based on Android 4.1.2, and features all the benefits you'd expect from that version of the OS, including "Project Butter" performance enhancements and the new Google Search with Google Now.
What's also new is the "TouchWiz Nature UX...

Galaxy Young, Galaxy XCover 2, Galaxy Pocket Plus also on the way according to leaked docs
The past week has seen the Galaxy Note 8.0 go from mere rumor to being more-or-less officially confirmed by Samsung. Now, thanks to a leaked Samsung roadmap obtained by TechnoBuffalo, we have our first clear indication of when the Note 10.1's little brother might become available to purchase. A slide on...

When EE (Everything Everywhere) first launched its 4G LTE service in the UK, two common complaints focused on the price of its subsidized smartphone contracts and the 8GB ceiling for data allowances. Today it seems the carrier's ready to test the water with some more adventurous price plans, as for a limited time it'll offer a budget-centric £31 per month, 24-month deal, along with a new "super-...

The latest round of reports have Samsung’s Galaxy S3 successor coming to market this April, following an unveiling at a March “Unpacked” event in the United States.
Firstly, Korean news outlet Asian Economies reports via “telecommunications industry” sources that Samsung is planning to unveil the Galaxy S4 at an "Unpacked" event in the U.S. in late March. Specifically, Friday, March 22 was...

'LIFE Mobile' to launch 3G service this March, 4G later
British phone retailer Phones4U has announced it's to get into the network operator game through a new virtual network operated on EE's infrastructure. The new "LIFE Mobile" network is scheduled to launch this March, with 2G and 3G services being offered at first, followed by 4G LTE options later in the year. EE is, of course, currently...

Following the leaked images of a new version of HTC Sense running on what seems to be HTC's upcoming "M7" flagship, another photo has emerged apparently showing Sense 5 on Verizon's Droid DNA. The shot surfaced via the user "LeakROMs" on Chinese social network Weibo, and it's a dead ringer for the software pictured on the supposed M7 device just a few hours ago. In addition to the re-worked icons...

In late 2012 rumors were circulating that Sony was hard at work at a 6-inch-plus large form factor Android phone. If the latest leaked image from China is to be believed, such a device could soon be on the way. The shot above comes from Chinese forum Digi-wo, and was posted by a member claiming that it's a part from a 6.44-inch, 1080p Sony smartphone/tablet device.
There's no way of verifying...

Last week brought news of a possible 8-inch Galaxy Note tablet coming at Mobile World Congress; today we have more details of more future Samsung tablets from the same source. Samsung fansite SamMobile reports via “Korean insiders” that the company will soon launch a new line of Galaxy Tabs, including a possible 7 and 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab 3 (codenamed “Santos”), and a new mystery tablet known...

We’ve seen a few renders claiming to show HTC’s next flagship Android phone of late -- first an image based on an on-device animation, then another mock-up render did the rounds on Twitter and elsewhere over the weekend. These latest images, however, could be the most accurate yet.
Today’s shots come from Android Police, which received them via an anonymous tipster claiming to have access to...

If you'd wanted to pick up a Galaxy S3 Mini, but had found your desire for the miniature smartphone soured by its lack of NFC support, then Samsung's got you covered. A new, NFC-capable version of the S3 Mini will launch in the UK starting at the end of the month, the manufacturer revealed in a press release this morning.
Besides the inclusion of NFC, giving the S3 Mini support for Samsung's "S...

We've hit the ground running after CES, with a wealth of Android news from around the world. And although that show gave us plenty of new devices to prepare for, the focus of much of this week's news was rumored devices expected to emerge in the months ahead. (Our money's on most of these being unveiled at Mobile World Congress in late February, by the way.)
Let's start by breaking down some...

Popular Google Reader app Press has been updated with new performance improvements, as well as various bug fixes. The second update for the app brings it up to version 1.1.1, and since updating we're noticing that the app does seem a good bit nippier -- especially when syncing large numbers of unread articles.
If you'd previously tried out Press but had been put off by issues with speed and...

The first major software update for Samsung's Galaxy Camera will add some new "smart" shooting modes, while addressing one of our main gripes with performance in the device's camera app. The update to Android 4.1.2 is available now as a ROM that can be flashed manually (and at your own risk) through the ODIN utility, though we're not yet aware of anyone having received it over-the-air through...

We got our first look at Sony's new Jelly Bean-based Android firmware last week on the Xperia Z. While visually similar to earlier Sony software, there were new features waiting to be discovered beneath the surface. These included new power management options, a re-vamped lock screen and a new phone locator feature.
Fortunately for owners of earlier Xperias, it seems Sony is hard at work porting...

The Optimus G might be just a few months old, but LG may already have a successor in the works, if the latest round of leaked information is to be believed. The image above was sent to Engadget by an anonymous tipster, and it appears to show an "Optimus G Pro" device headed to Japanese carrier NTT Docomo. Adding weight to those reports is a list of specs on Japanese site Blog of Mobile, one...

We've come across the Samsung GT-N5100 and GT-N5110 a couple of times before in benchmarks and certification listings. We've even speculated that based on the model number and specs, they're likely candidates for Wifi and 3G versions of a new, smaller Galaxy Note tablet. Now Samsung fan site SamMobile claims to have uncovered details of the GT-N5100/10, which it says will come to market as the "...

With the announcement of any official Nexus accessory comes the certainty of months of speculation as to if, when and where it'll eventually be released. So was the case with the Nexus 4's official Qi-based wireless charging station, first shown on launch day back in November, and increasingly elusive since that time.
Today the official orb-shaped charger has shown up for pre-order on Norwegian...

Nexus 4 production ramping up over the next month; Optimus G to hit Europe in March
There's been a lot of back-and-forth over the past couple of months about exactly what's been behind the delays in getting the Nexus 4 back in stock on the Google Play Store. Before the holidays Google UK's managing director blamed "scarce and erratic" supplies for some of the issues experienced by Play Store...

Last week in Las Vegas we saw the first of Sony's 2013 smartphone line-up, and now it may be time for a refreshed Sony tablet to join the fray. A device by the name of "Xperia Tablet Z" briefly appeared on a product listing page for Japanese carrier NTT Docomo, indicating that the tablet would appear alongside the Xperia Z at a "Docomo smartphone lounge" event in Fukuoka, Japan next Tuesday, Jan...

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